The business community in Jacmel turned out in force to participate in Peace Dividend Trust’s Business Training and Networking Event on December 15. Nearly 100 business owners received training about international bidding procedures and other critical business topics, then spent the afternoon networking with international organizations that could be potential buyers of their goods and services.

The event at the city’s Jaclef Hotel marked Peace Dividend Trust’s ongoing effort to expand its services into Haiti’s provinces, at a time when decentralization is at the forefront of the Haitian government’s agenda. PDT has also held recent training and networking events in St. Marc and Cap Haitian.

The capacity-building portion of the program, run by PDT Training Director Fransonnette Prussien, covered the tenets of business creation, formalization, and registration, as well as how to identify and profit from new business opportunities and sourcing to international organizations. Local businesses were then given the opportunity to participate in a “matchmaking” session with international organizations such as MINUSTAH and Save the Children. Business owners learned about the needs and procurement procedures of NGOs operating in the area, and were also able to tell the NGOs about the goods and services they can provide.

“The training was really helpful because there were many things about doing business with international organizations that I didn’t know about or was unclear on,” explained Marcelin Louina of Jacmel’s Paradise Hotel Bar and Restaurant. “Now that I’ve been through this training I feel confident that I have the know-how to take my business to the next level.”

Antoinica Payene La Fruits de la Vallee de Jacmel, a fruit and jam distributor, presented her company’s products to Save the Children’s Procurement Manager (pictured below). “Bringing us together with suppliers, and giving us the skills to successfully interact with them, is important to stimulate the Haitian economy,” she said. /////